Heel-finishing machine



J. F. STANDISH HEEL FINISHING MACHINE Filed Jan. 28. 1921 Fig.1

Patented May 29, 1%24.

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JOHN F. srannrsn, or WINTHROP, nrsssncnnsnrrs, assranon' ronnrr'nnsnon nacnrnnnr ooaroaarron, or rnrnason, saw Jnasnr, a. coarona'rron on NEW JERSEY.

HEEL-FINISHING TEACH-TIME.

Application filed January 28, 1921. Serial No. 440,358.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that 1, JOHN F. STANDISH, a citizen of the United States, residing at l vinthrop, in the county of Suffolk and State of Massachusetts, have invented certain Improvements in Heel-Finishing Machines, of which the following description, in connection with the accompanying drawings, is a specification, like reference characters on the drawings indicating like parts in the several figures.

This invention relates to machines for finishing leather and is herein disclosed as embodied in a'machine for burnishing the edges of the heels of boots or shoes.

In machines of this type, it is usual to employ a rotary tool, shaped and arranged to polish and finish the side surface of a heel by being brought, while rotating, into engagement with all portions of said surface. Such tools are commonly given a transverse sectional contour which is a complement of the contour of the heel to be finished. The heels of shoes, however, especially those for women, differ greatly in height and form, some being excessively curved and these curves varying from sea son to season. Consequently, a large number of finishing tools conforming to these heels are required to finish them properly.

An object of this invention is to provide an improved finishing machine which is adapted for finishing heels having any shape or degree of curvature without changing from one tool to another. In the illustrative embodiment, the work engaging tool comprises a series of burnishing elements, in the form of rings, mounted to rotate about a center, each ring having an adjustable carrier for changing the position of its center of rotation. Thus the periphery of the tool, as a whole, can be made to conform to a large variety of heels having difierent curvatures. Furthermore, the heel to be treated may itself be utilized to set the burnishing elements in a position conforming exacting to the contour ofthe heel. As shown, eachcarrier is slidably mounted on a sup port and all the carriers can be clamped to the support simultaneously in an adjusted position determined by pressing the heel against the burnishing members and thus moving the carriers. Springs, interposed between the carriers and the burnishing elements impart a yielding quality to the tool to enable it to accommodate itself to any slight irregularities in the work.

As a furtherfeature, the necessary dislhis is convenientby ofisetting the carrier support. Preferably, the support will be made to conform to a line which is an average between a straight line and the line of curvature of the most abruptly curved heel.

Another feature relates to the construction by which an improved rubbing action is produced, and by which'a strealry application of wax to the work is avoided. In the illustrative embodiment, the burnishing elements are mounted to rotate on a support which is made oscillatory to impart to the burnishing elements a movement which is transverse to the rotary movement. This causes the rubbing movement of each burnishing element to overlap that of cent one.

These and other features of the invention will appear more fully from the following specification and accompanying drawings, in which Fig. 1 is a front elevation of the machine;

Fig. 2 is a section on the line 22 of Fig. 1, showing the burnishing elements in an initial position conforming to an average heel:

Fig. 3 is a section Fig. 2';

Fig. 4: is an enlarged section of a detail.

The finishing tool comprises a series of burnishing or rubbing elements 2 in the form of rings mounted to turn about a center and to oscillate during their turning movement. Preferably, the burnishing elements 2 will have continuous rotary movement in one direction and are mounted for this purpose on ball bearings 4E interposed between the elements and a series of bearin members 6'. Each bearing member 6 is ho low, having interior fiat faces 8, preferably horizontally arranged, for guided movement along corresponding flat faces formed on an adjustable carrier 10. The carriers 10 are normally fixed in position and, in order to impart a yielding quality to the burnishing elements so that they can search out and find the slight inequalities and irregularities the adjaon the line 33 of in the Work, a light spring 12 is interposed between each carrier and its corresponding bearing member.

To adjust the carriers and displace them laterally for adapting the tool for different work, each carrier has a rectangular opening providing fiat guide surfaces for sliding movement horizontally along similar flat surfaces formed on asupport 14;. A pair of springs 16 is interposed between each carrier andthe support 14 to hold the carrier normally toward the front of the machine in an initial or limiting position in contact with the support 14. These springs 16 yield less readily than the springs 12 for a purpose which will later appear.

The support 14 is provided with an ex tension 18 rigidly fixed in a bearing 20 which.

is mounted to oscillate the tool during its rotation. To provide an initial displace: ment of some of the burnishing elements for decreasing the range of adjustment which is necessary to adapt them to the sharply curved portions of a heel, the support 14. is offset laterally in the form of steps 22 on each of which slides one of the carriers 10. The support is so shaped that it conforms generally to a line which is an average between a straight line and a curved line which follows the contour of the most sharply curved heel which it is expected to treat with the machine. Thus the adjust-- ment of the burnishing elements for any particular heel may be reduced to a minimum. To adjust the carriers so that the burnishing elements may conform to any heel, the clamp nut 28 is loosened and the work is presented to the front edges of the burnishing elements and pressed rearwardly. At first the weaker springs 12 will be compressed entirely into their sockets whereupon a positive movement of the carriers 10 under control of the work will take place rearwardly against the tension of the springs 16. This movement displaces the centers of rotation of the burnishing elements in such manner that their peripheries conform to the contour of the work. All of the carriers can then be clamped simultaneously in a fixed position between an abutment 2 on the support and a heating plate or disk 26 which surrounds the extension 18 and bears against both the bearing 20 and the end carrier 10, the nut 28 serving to secure the parts in this position. As shown best in Fig. 4-, the burnishing elements or rings 2 are narrower than the carriers 10 so that when the latter are pressed tightly together the former are still free to rotate. The bearing members 6 are also made thinner than the carriers so that, when the latter are clamped, the bearing members and burnishing elements may give somewhat against the tension of the springs 12 when minor irregularities in the'work are encountered.

The bearing 20 may have a movable cap plate 30 so that the tool may readily be removed for repairs or for the insertion or removal of burnishing elements.

For oscillating the burnishing elements during rotation and to cause the rubbing action of one element to overlap that of the next element to prevent wax from being applied in streaks, the support 1% and its hearing 20 are carried by a rocking arm 32 having a pivot shaft 34 which extends down wardly through the base of the machine frame. The axis of this pivot shaft 31 is approximately in alinement with the center of the tool so that the oscillation serves to aid the tool in reaching into and fitting a sharp curve. an arm 36, Fig. 2, is clamped to the pivot shaft 34 and is also pivoted to a link 38 actuated by an eccentric 40. The eccentric is adj ustably mounted on the lower end of a. vertical shaft 42 which is driven by means of spiral gears 44. from the drive shaft l6. The shaft 4-6 may be driven in any suitable manner as by a belt pulley 4%.; and belt 50 connected to motor.

To rotate the burnishing elements as they oscillate, a driving pin 52 is passed through radially extending slots 54 in the burnishing element, these slots allowing the described displacement of the elements in conformation with the work. he driving pin is secured to a ring 56 which is mounted to rotate on ball bearings carried by a disk secured between the abutment 24 and one of the end carriers 10. The connection. be-

tween the burnishing elements and the drive shaft 46 inclu ies What is in effect a universal joint. As shown, the pin r 2 is connected at one end by a ball to a plate 60 which is horizontally slidable in a second plate which in turn is free to play in and out in a radial slot in the driving disk (ii of the shaft 46.

To aid in supporting the heel for application to the tool, a curyed tread rest (i6 is mounted for adjustment horizontally in a bearing bracket 68, the latter being ad ust able from front to rear in a second bearing bracket 70. For applying *ax to the tool, advantage is taken of the fact that the burnishing elements have no vertical displacement. Mounted above the latter is a wax pot 72 having a valve and. at the lower end, a slot in which a piece of felt may he in serted to distribute the war; evenly. For heating the wax and keeping it in proper condition, an electric heating unit H is inserted in the lower end of the wax pot. this unit being connected in parallel with the heating units 76, 78 that are inserted in sockets in the stationary ring-shaped heating disk 26 from which heat is supplied by conduction to the tool and the difiicult-ies incident to supplying electric current to a moving heat unit avoided.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent of the United States is:

1. In a machine of the class described, a series of rubbing elements, each mounted to rotate about a center, and supporting means for the elements constructed and arranged to permit adjustment of the position of the center of rotation of any of the rubbing elements without affecting the position of any other elements. j

2. In a machine of the class described, a series of rubbing elements, each mounted to rotate about a center, and means for permitting a change in the position of the center of rotation of any of the rubbing elements and for thereafter maintaining said change in position.

3. In a machine of the class described, a series of rotary rubbing elements relatively displaceable in parallel planes to conform to the contour of a piece of work,- and means for maintaining the relative displacement during rotation.

at. In a machine of the class described, a tool comprising a series of rubbing elements each mounted to rotate about a center, means for fixing the centers of rotation of the elements in positions of relative lateral displacement with respect to the axis of the tool, said displacement being. efiected by pressing the work against the tool.

5. In a machine of the class described, a series of rubbing elements, and adjustable carriers therefor, said carriers being movable simultaneously to adjusted position by pressing the work to be treated against the rubbing elements.

6. In a machine of the class described, a series of burnishing elements, adjustable carriers therefor, a support for the carriers, and

. springs interposed between the support and the carriers to move the carriers to a limiting position and allow adjustment in the opposite direction.

7. In a machine of the class described, a series of burnishing elements, a series of adjustable carriers therefor, a support for the carriers, said carriers being movable on the support to adjusted positions by pressing a heel to be burnished against the burnishing elements, and a spring interposed between the support and each carrier to return the carriers to an initial position.

8. In a machine of the class described, a support, a series of burnishing elements, a series of carriers therefor movable on the support to an adjusted position in which the burnishing elements conform to the contour of a heel to be burnished, and means for clamping the carriers simultaneously in adjusted position.

9. In a machine of the class described, a series of burnishing elements, bearing members for supporting the burnishing elements nishing element turns, a carrier for supporting the bearing member, and a spring interposed between the carrier and the bearing member for causing the burnishing element ,to engage the work yieldingly.

. 11. In a machine of the class described, a series of burnishing elements movable about a center, a series of bearing memberstherefor, a series of carriers for supporting the bearing members, springs interposed between the carriers and the bearing members, i

asupport for the carriers,-and springs interposed between the carriers and the support.

12. In a machine of the class described, a support, bearings for a series of burnishing elements, carriers interposed between the bearings and the support with capacity for sliding movement relatively to either, yielding means interposed between the bearings and the carriers, and yielding means interposed between the carriers and the support, one of said yielding means being weaker than the other.

13. In a machine of the class described, a series of individual rotary burnishing elements, means for permitting a displacement of the centers of rotation of the burnishing elements transversely of their axes of rotation in a common plane, and means for applying wax to the peripheries of the elements in a plane at right angles to the common plane of the displacement of their axis.

14. In a machine of the class described, a series of burnishing elements each movable about an axis, and supporting means for the elements, said supporting means having an offset portion constructed and arranged initially to displace some of the burnishing elements in planes transverse to their axes of movement whereby the working faces are caused to assume a curved contour at the point of application of the work. i

15. In a machine of the class described, a series of burnishing elements, a series of adjustable carriers therefor, and a support for the carriers having an oflset portion to reduce the range of adjustment which is required to cause the burnishing elements on the offset portion to conform to an abrupt curve.

16. In a machine of the class described, a series of burnishing elements, a series of carriers therefor, a support for the carriers having an offset portion to set the burnishing elements in an initial position conforming approximately to the contour of an average heel, and means for securing the carriers in a final set position with the burnishing elements conforming to the outline of a heel to be burnished.

17. In a machine of the class described, a support having an ofisetportion which follows approximately the contour of an average heel, a series of burnishing elements, and a series of carriers therefor movable on the support to a set position in Which the burnishing elements conform to the contour of a heel to be burnished.

18. In a machine of the class described, an oscillating support, a burnishing element mounted to turn about the support, means for oscillating the support, and means for turning the element.

19. In a machine of the class described, a series of burnishing elements mounted to turn about a center, means for turning the elements, and an oscillating support for the ni i g e e ents f r c us g th r bbing movement of each burnishing element to erlap t of th j c nt lemen 2 n a m h ne of t cla s de ribed, an

w Oscillating suppor a bu nis ng L 01 s mseesaw prising va series of burnishing elements mounted to turn about the support, means for actuating the elements, and means for oscillating the support about an axis extending approximately through the center of the ,tool.

21. In a machine of the class described, a framework, a rock arm pivoted to the framework, 'a support carried by the rock arm, a series of burnishing elements mounted on the support, means for rotating the burnishing elements, and means for rocking the arm to oscillate the burnishing elements during their rotation.

22. In a machine of the class described, an oscillating support, a burnishing element rotatably mounted on the oscillating support, a driving member, a pin extending through the burnishing element, and universal connections between the pin and the driving member.

In testimony whereof I have signed my name to this specification.

JOHN F. STANDISH. 

